BALTIMORE — Rob Long is taking over as the head women's basketball coach at Mercy High School, bringing more than 20 years of coaching experience to one of the program's most storied positions.
Long, who is also known for his radio work on 105.7 and as a host of O's Xtra, has coached girls' basketball at several schools, including Mount Carmel, Community College of Baltimore County, Dundalk, College of Notre Dame, and most recently Rosedale Christian Academy.
Despite his extensive coaching background, Long said the move to Mercy carries a weight unlike anything he has experienced before.
Hear from coach Long as he talks about his journey to becoming a head coach at Mercy High School
"Just coming here, walking through the halls, it was a tradition that you can kinda feel. I told President Mary Beth Lion that this is probably the most pressure that I've ever felt as a coach coming into a job...Because it's Mercy," Long said.
Long said the opportunity had been on his radar for 11 years, but the timing was never right — and there were moments he thought it might never happen.
"It went from always destined to happen to I thought it would never happen. Sometimes when things are such a perfect match, you think it's too perfect, it won't happen, and I'm not gonna lie to you, there were some times during this process that we thought maybe this just won't work," Long said.
Long said he was handpicked to succeed his predecessor, Coach Panageotou, a move that has given him added confidence heading into the role. He said knowing Coach Panageotou remains involved and accessible has made the transition easier.
"That makes it so much easier to do because he's part of the process and I know even when he leaves in terms of the title that he's gonna be at the games. I'm gonna have conversations with him if there are questions that I don't have answers to. I know he's just a text or a phone call away. George is my friend. It's not just some guy I know coaching. He's a person I call my friend," Long said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
